System and method for providing call subject information to a called party

ABSTRACT

A system and method is provided for providing call subject information to a called party. A call subject platform receives a call from a calling party. The call subject platform prompts the calling party to provide call subject information. If call subject information is received at the call subject platform from the calling party, then the call subject platform sends at least part of the call subject information to the called party. The call subject platform then determines if the called party desires to communicate with the calling party.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The field of the invention is providing information received from acalling party to a called party, and in particular providing callsubject information received from a calling party to a called party.

When a calling party desires to communicate with a called party, thecalled party must often decide whether to communicate with the callingparty based upon insufficient information, For example, one known systemonly provides the called party with a ring when the calling partydesires to communicate with the called party. The ring reveals nothingabout the identity of the calling party; nothing about the purpose ofthe communication desired by the calling party; and nothing about theurgency of the communication.

Another known system provides some additional information about acalling party by identifying the name and/or telephone number of thecalling party on a display visible to the called party (e.g., “callerID”). Although this provides more information than only a ring, it stillfails to inform the called party as to the purpose of the callingparty's intended communication or its urgency. Further, the addedinformation provided by caller ID is worthless in practice when thecalled party is unfamiliar with the calling party's telephone numberand/or name.

With such limited information about the calling party and virtually noinformation about the topic, contents or urgency of the calling party'scommunication, a called party may have to communicate with a callingparty with which it would rather not. For example, when the callingparty is a telemarketer desiring to communicate the advantages of aproduct it wishes to sell to a called party at the called party's dinnertime, the called party may prefer not to communicate with thetelemarketer. On the other hand, if the calling party is a hospitalofficial desiring to communicate information pertaining to the medicalcondition of a member of the called party's family, then the calledparty may desire to communicate with the official, even at a time thatwould otherwise be considered inconvenient.

If the called party is only provided with a simple ring as in one knownsystem, the called party does not know whether the calling party is atelemarketer or a hospital official. Thus, the called party feelscompelled to communicate with the calling party at least until thecalling party can be identified and/or the subject of the call can beascertained by the called party. If the called party is apprised of thecalling party's telephone number and/or name as in another known system,the called party may not be able to distinguish the number or name ofthe telemarketer from that of the hospital official, and thus may stillfeel compelled to communicate with the calling party.

A called party needs more information than that provided by knownsystems to make an informed decision as to whether to communicate withthe calling party.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In one embodiment of the present invention, a system and method providecall subject information from a calling party to a called party. A callsubject platform receives a call from a calling party. The call subjectplatform prompts the calling party to provide call subject information.If call subject information is received at the call subject platformfrom the calling party, then the call subject platform sends at leastpart of the call subject information to the called party. The callsubject platform then determines if the called party desires tocommunicate with the calling party.

The present invention advantageously provides more information to acalled party about a prospective communication than do known systems.This advantageously provides a more substantial basis upon which thecalled party can make an informed decision as to whether to communicatewith the calling party. In accordance with the present invention, thecalled party advantageously need not communicate with a calling party todetermine if communication with the calling party is desirable. Thepresent invention thus allows the called party to advantageously avoidan unwanted communication with a calling party.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 shows a system-level embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 shows an embodiment of an apparatus in accordance with thepresent invention.

FIG. 3 shows another embodiment of an apparatus in accordance with thepresent invention.

FIG. 4 is a flow chart showing an embodiment of the method of thepresent invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

FIG. 1 shows a system-level embodiment of the present invention. Callingparty 101, called party 102, and call subject platform 104 are connectedto a network 103. In one embodiment, of the present invention, network103 is the public switched telephone network (PSTN). In anotherembodiment, network 103 is the Internet. In other embodiments of thepresent invention, network 103 includes a packet-switched, circuitswitched, connectionless, or connection oriented network orinterconnected networks, or any combination thereof.

As used herein, the term “computer” is an apparatus that comprises aprocessor, a memory that stores instructions adapted to be executed bythe processor, and a port adapted to be connected to a network. Thememory and port are coupled to the processor. Embodiments of memoryinclude a hard disk drive, random access memory (RAM), read only memory(ROM), flash memory, or any combination thereof.

In one embodiment of the present invention, calling party 101 is atelephone. In another embodiment, a calling party 101 is a calling partycomputer whose memory stores instructions adapted to be executed by theprocessor to communicate through a network, and to provide call subjectinformation, As used herein, “call subject information” includes anyinformation from the calling party 101 beyond the calling party's 101identity or telephone number. Examples of call subject informationinclude; information pertaining to the purpose of the telephone callfrom the calling party 101; information pertaining to the urgency of thetelephone call; etc. For example, call subject information can include areference to a previous call from the called party 102 to the callingparty 101: “I'm returning your telephone call of earlier today” from thecalling party 101 is an example of call subject information. Callsubject information can be advantageously combined with otherinformation (e.g., caller identification information) to contribute tothe process of determining how the called party 102 desires to handlethe telephone call (e.g., communicate with the calling party 101,forward the call, send the call to a Messaging service, not accept thecall, etc.)

In one embodiment, called party 102 is a telephone. In anotherembodiment, called party 102 is a called party computer. In oneembodiment, a called party computer is a computer whose memory storesinstructions adapted to be executed by the processor to communicatethrough a network; to receive call subject information; and to providean indication as to whether communications are desired with a callingparty.

An embodiment of call subject platform 104 is shown in FIG. 2. Callsubject platform 104 comprises a processor 301, a memory 302 that storescall subject instructions 303 adapted to be executed by processor 301 toreceive call subject information from calling party 101 and send atleast a part of the call subject information to called party 102.Instructions 303 are further adapted to be executed by the processor 301to determine if called party 102 desires to communicate with callingparty 101. In another embodiment, instructions 303 are further adaptedto be executed by the processor 301 to establish communications betweenthe calling party 101 and the called party 102 if it is determined thatthe called party 102 desires to communicate with the calling party 101.

Embodiments of memory 302 include a hard disk drive, random accessmemory (RAM), read only memory (ROM), flash memory, or any combinationthereof. Call subject platform 104 further comprises a port 304 adaptedto be connected to a network 103. Port 304 and memory 302 are coupled toprocessor 301.

Another embodiment of the call subject platform 104 is shown in FIG. 3.Call subject platform 104 comprises an application specific integratedcircuit (ASIC) 401 that embodies call subject instructions 402 that ASIC401 executes to receive a call from a calling party, prompt the callingparty for call subject information, receive call subject informationfrom the calling party, and determine if the called party desires tocommunicate with the calling party. In yet another embodiment,instructions 402 are further adapted to be executed by ASIC 401 toestablish communications between the calling party 101 and the calledparty 102.

ASIC 401 further comprises memory 403 and a port 404. Embodiments ofmemory 403 include a hard disk drive, random access memory (RAM), readonly memory (ROM), flash memory, or any combination thereof. Memory 403and port 404 are coupled to ASIC 401. In one embodiment, memory 403stores call subject information.

FIG. 4 is a flow chart showing an embodiment of the present invention.The call subject platform receives a call from a calling party, step501. The call subject platform prompts the calling party for callsubject information, step 502. If the call subject platform receivedcall subject information from the calling party, the call subjectplatform sends at least a part of the call subject information to thecalled party, step 503. In one embodiment of the present invention, atleast part of the call subject information is received from the callingparty in a first format (e.g., text) and at least part of the callsubject information received in that first format is translated by thecall subject platform into a second format (e.g., audio) adapted to beplayed or displayed to the called party. Techniques known in the art canbe used to perform such a translation. Examples of such known techniquesinclude voice recognition, voice-to-text translation, text-to-audiotranslation, dual tone modulated frequency signal to audio messagetranslation, and so on.

The call subject platform then determines if the called party desires tocommunicate with the calling party, step 504. In one embodiment, if itis determined that the called party desires to communicate with thecalling party, then the call subject platform establishes communicationsbetween the calling party and the called party, step 505. In anotherembodiment, if it is determined that the called party desires tocommunicate with the calling party, but that the called party ispresently unavailable, then the call from the calling party is forwardedto a Messaging Service. In yet another embodiment, if it is determinedthat the called party desires to communicate with a calling party, thenthe call is forwarded to another telephone number.

In one embodiment, if the call subject platform does not receive callsubject information from the calling party, the call subject platformprovides an indication-to the called party that no call subjectinformation was received from the calling party, step 506. The callsubject platform then determines if the called party desires tocommunicate with the called party, step 504.

In another embodiment of the present invention, if no call subjectinformation is received from the calling party, then this lack ofinformation automatically results in the determination that the calledparty does not desire to communicate with the calling party and the callis terminated or forwarded to another telephone number or forwarded to aMessaging Service, etc.

In one embodiment of the present invention, if it is determined that thecalled party desires to communicate with the calling party, the callsubject platform sends a message to a switch. In response, the switchestablishes communications between the calling party and the calledparty.

In one embodiment of the present invention, call subject information isobtained by the call subject platform from the calling party byrequesting the calling party to select an item of call subjectinformation from a plurality of items of call subject information. Thiscan be carried out using an interactive voice response system in knownfashion. For example, the calling party can be asked to press “one” ifthe caller is a relative of the called party, “two” if the calling partyis the family physician, and “three” if the call is urgent. In response,the calling party generates a dual tone modulated frequency (DTMF)signal using a telephone touchpad, in one embodiment. In anotherembodiment, the calling party generates a DTMF signal using a computer.

In another embodiment, the calling party is prompted for voice responsesto questions. For example, the calling party can be asked to speak theword “one” if the calling party is a relative. In another embodiment,the calling party can be asked to speak a message to be sent to thecalled party pertaining to the calling party's intended communication.The call subject platform records this message. Voice responses can bedigitized and/or translated into text using voice recognition techniquesknown in the art. Call subject information can include multimediainformation. As used herein, the term “multimedia call subjectinformation” includes call subject information that is text, audio,video, graphics, animation, or DTMF, or any combination thereof.Multimedia call subject data can include digital data, analoginformation, or any combination thereof.

In one embodiment, the DTMF signals are translated by the call subjectplatform into an audio message. If the DTMF signal for “one” is receivedalone, then the call subject platform processes the DTMF signal andsends an audio message to the called party that states “A call from arelative is waiting.” If the DTMF signal for “two” is received alone,then the call subject platform sends an audio message to the calledparty that states, “A call from Dr. PHYSICIAN_NAME is waiting,” wherePHYSICIAN_NAME is a variable whose value is the name of the familyphysician.

In another embodiment, voice response messages are played by the callsubject platform to the called party. In another embodiment, voiceresponse messages are translated into text and sent to the called partyby the call subject platform.

In one embodiment of the present invention, call subject information isprocessed before being sent to the called party. For example,information provided in an audio voice format by the calling party istranslated into text and summarized by the call subject platform beforebeing sent to the called party. In one embodiment, the information issummarized by selecting key words from the call subject data. In anotherembodiment, the information is summarized by truncating the call subjectdata received from the calling party.

In another embodiment, at least a part of the call subject informationis forwarded to the called party intact, just as it was received fromthe calling party (e.g., a short voice or video message).

The present invention thus advantageously provides multimediainformation to the called party from the calling party to help thecalled party to decide if the called party desires to communicate withthe calling party. This advantageously allows the called party to avoidunwanted communication with a calling party.

Although several embodiments are specifically illustrated and describedherein, it will be appreciated that modifications and variations of thepresent invention are covered by the above teachings and are within thepurview of the appended claims without departing from the spirit andintended scope of the invention.

What is claimed is:
 1. A method for providing call subject informationfrom a calling party to a called party, comprising the steps of:receiving call from a calling party; prompting the calling party toprovide call subject information, wherein at least part of the callsubject information from the calling party is received as a dual tonemodulated frequency signal and if call subject information is receivedfrom the calling party, then summarizing the call subject information;translating at least part of the dual tone modulated frequency signalinto an audio message to be played to the called party; sending thesummary of the call subject information to the called party; anddetermining if the called party desires to communicate with the callingparty.
 2. The method of claim 1, wherein if no call subject informationis received from the calling party, providing an indication to thecalled party that no call subject information was provided by thecalling party.
 3. The method of claim 1, wherein if no call subjectinformation is received from the calling party, then automaticallydetermining that the called party does not desire to communicate withthe calling party.
 4. The method of claim 1, wherein if it is determinedthat the called party does not desire to communicate with the callingparty, then handling the call by forwarding the call to anothertelephone number.
 5. The method of claim 1, wherein if it is determinedthat the called party does not desire to communicate with the callingparty, then forwarding the call to a Messaging service.
 6. The method ofclaim 1, wherein if it is determined that the called party does notdesire to communicate with the calling party, then terminating the callfrom the calling party.
 7. The method of claim 1, wherein if it isdetermined that the called party desires to communicate with the callingparty, then establishing communications between the calling party andthe called party.
 8. The method of claim 1, wherein if it is determinedthat the called party desires to communicate with the calling party,then establishing communications between the calling party and thecalled party by bridging the call from the calling party with a call tothe called party.
 9. The method of claim 1, wherein if it is determinedthat the called party desires to communicate with the calling party,then establishing communications between the calling party and thecalled party by sending a message to a switch instructing the switch tobridge the call from the calling party with the call to the calledparty.
 10. The method of claim 1, wherein prompting a calling party toprovide call subject information comprises the step of requesting thecalling party to select an item of call subject information from aplurality of items of call subject information.
 11. The method of claim1, wherein call subject information is received from the calling partyusing an interactive voice response system.
 12. The method of claim 1,wherein call subject information pertains to the subject matter of thecommunication desired by the calling party.
 13. The method of claim 1,wherein sending the summary of the call subject information to thecalled party comprises the steps of: processing at least part of thecall subject information received from the calling party; and sendingthe summary of the processed call subject information to the calledparty.
 14. The method of claim 1, wherein at least part of the callsubject information from the calling party is received as text, andfurther comprising the step of translating at least a part of the textinto an audio message adapted to be played to the called party.
 15. Themethod of claim 1, wherein at least part of the call subject informationfrom the calling party is received as an audio signal, and furthercomprising the step of translating at least a part of the audio signalinto a text message adapted to be displayed to the called party.
 16. Themethod of claim 1, wherein determining if the called party desires tocommunicate with the calling party comprises the steps of: i. promptingthe called party to indicate if the called party desires to communicatewith the calling party; ii. receiving a response from the called partythat indicates if the called party desires to communicate with thecalling party.
 17. The method of claim 1, wherein summarizing the callsubject information includes extracting keyword from the call subjectinformation provided by the caller.
 18. The method of claim 1, whereinsummarizing the call subject information includes truncating the callsubject information provided by the caller.
 19. The method of claim 1,wherein multimedia call subject information is received from the callingparty.
 20. An apparatus for providing call subject information from acalling party to a called party over a network, comprising: a processor;a memory that stores call subject instructions adapted to be executed bysaid processor to prompt a calling party for call subject information,at least part of the call subject information from the calling partybeing received as a dual tone modulated frequency signal, receive callsubject information from the calling party, summarize the call subjectinformation, translate at least part of the dual tone modulatedfrequency signal into an audio message to be played to the called party,and determine if the called party desires to communicate with thecalling party; and a port adapted to be connected to the network, saidport and said memory coupled to said processor.
 21. The apparatus ofclaim 20, wherein said call subject instructions are further adapted tobe executed by said processor to send a summary of the call subjectinformation to the called party.
 22. The apparatus of claim 20, whereinsaid call subject instructions are further adapted to be executed bysaid processor to establish communications between the calling party andthe called party.
 23. The apparatus of claim 20, wherein said callsubject instructions are further adapted to be executed by saidprocessor to translate call subject information received from a callingparty from a first format to a second format.
 24. A medium that storesinstructions adapted to be executed by a processor to perform the stepsof: receiving call from a calling party; prompting the calling party toprovide call subject information, wherein at least part of the callsubject information from the calling party is received as a dual tonemodulated frequency signal and if call subject information is receivedfrom the calling party, then sending a summary of the call subjectinformation to the called party; translating at least part of the dualtone modulated frequency signal into an audio message to be played tothe called party; and determining if the called party desires tocommunicate with the calling party.
 25. A system that provides callsubject information from a calling party to a called party, comprising:means for receiving call subject information from a calling party,wherein at least part of the call subject information from the callingparty is received as a dual tone modulated frequency signal; means forsending a summary of the call subject information to the called party;means for translating at least part of the dual tone modulated frequencysignal into an audio message to be played to the called party; and meansfor determining if the called party desires to communicate with thecalling party.
 26. The system of claim 25, further comprising means forcompleting a call between the calling party and the called party.